Exploring Around Luang Prabang - Kuang Si Waterfalls & Pak Ou Caves


Advertisement
Laos' flag
Asia » Laos » West » Luang Prabang
March 14th 2015
Published: March 14th 2015
Edit Blog Post

I had booked myself onto a day trip for Friday, with White Elephant Adventures, who have an office on Sasavangvong Rd, the main drag here in Luang Prabang. Meeting time was 8.20am, outside the office. There were only two other people going on this trip, a nice small group. The cost of the tour was $AUD65, certainly not cheap.

Our local guide, named Voo, walked us to the vehicle we would start our day in, a small truck with a canopy over padded bench seats in the back. I tossed my backpack in, climbed over the tailgate and sat down. For the next 45 minutes we were treated to a rough ride over a dreadful gravel road and eventually pulled into a hill tribe village, home to 23 families of the Hmong people. From here we walked a short distance to the next village, inhabited by the Khmu people, home to 42 families. Both villages were similar, from my point of view, but I know they speak different dialects and have different customs and the villagers don't intermarry. The Hmong and Khmu ethnic groups are animist with widely differing beliefs that make Laos the ethnically rich country it is. They
Replacing the Thatch RoofReplacing the Thatch RoofReplacing the Thatch Roof

In the Hmong Village
both believe in the existence of spiritual beings and their homes are built with no windows, thus making entry harder for evil spirits. Each home contains an open fire pit for cooking with family beds along the walls.

After leaving the villages we started trekking, with the Kuang Si Waterfalls our ultimate destination. It was hot, and the scenery unremarkable with hazy mountain views. As we progressed along the trail, the walk became more challenging and the scenery more beautiful. The flat path became sloped, then before long I had to watch where I was putting my feet as the terrain became rocky. I found myself clamouring up and down, up and over, as we walked in single file. I was grateful for the bamboo walking stick I was given, I'm sure it saved me from sliding many a time.

We had a couple of rest stops and eventually walked out of the jungle into a cleared area where other people was sitting. Only 30 minutes to go until we reach the falls. We had lunch here - containers of cold steamed rice with small individual bags of chicken, vegetables and stock to mix with the rice, which
Prickly fence!Prickly fence!Prickly fence!

This fence is guaranteed to keep out unwelcome four footed visitors! Taken in the Khmu village.
Voo had purchased before leaving Luang Prabang. By now this food had been carried in his backpack for four hours with no refrigeration. This thought crossed my mind whilst I ate. Would there be side effects tomorrow? Thankfully not!

We continued our walk and arrived at the very top of the falls half an hour later. There was a simple bamboo fence across the water, a metre back from the edge. I took off my shoes and socks and entered the water which was only shin deep. Everyone was able to paddle here and I took photos down the waterfall. The water was so cool, heaven for my weary feet! After a short stop here, we continued our walk, or should I say scramble, to the base of the falls. Nothing much has been done to make this descent easier or safer for people. There was one long set of concrete steps and after them, I had to follow the well worn path over rocks and tree roots. I was very conscious of the fact that I could twist my ankle easily here, and took my time.

Kuang Si Waterfalls are one of the most stunning in SE Asia. There are three tiers leading to a 50 metre drop into the most spectacular azure pools. These pools continue down the mountain, terraced like the rice paddies, each one only half a metre or less lower than the previous one, and all completely natural. I never seen any waterfall like it anywhere, it took my breath away.

There are changing huts available and I wasted no time getting my swimsuit on. The water was freezing, but what a tonic after the sweltering heat of the day. I sat under one of the small terraces and allowed the water to cascade over me. Sheer heaven!

Eventually I had to get out as we were moving on. Next stop was Free The Bears Rescue Centre, just inside the entrance gate of Kuang Si. All inhabitants of this centre have been saved from the illegal wildlife trade and are kept here instead of being released back into the jungle, to possibly become the victim of poachers again. They all dozed in the sun and I was able to get good photos of one bear enjoying a hammock.
We returned to Luang Prabang, about 25klm away, in the same vehicle we started the day in, but this time over a sealed road. It has been an very enjoyable day!

The next day (Saturday) I decided to enjoy a few hours on the water and visit Pak Ou Caves, which are 25klm upstream.
One of the most respected holy sites in Lao; Pak Ou Caves has a history dating back thousands of years. Crammed with over 4,000 Buddha icons, the caves are a kind of statue graveyard where unwanted images are placed. They are a shrine to the river spirit and Lord Buddha, and are set in a dramatic limestone cliff at the meeting point of the Mekong and Nam Ou Rivers.

There are two caves to visit, the lower cave called Tham Ting and the upper cave Tham Theung, both boasting miniature Buddhist figures that are mostly made of wood. Positioned about 15metres above the river, Tham Ting, the upper cave, filters in some natural light but a torch is required for the absolutely pitch black Tham Theung, so I didn't venture past the doorway there as I had no torch. The upper cave is home to the majority of the Buddha statues and there are probably hundreds you can't see without a torch further in the caves. The statues are believed to have been left there by local people for hundreds of years.

I knew the cheapest way to visit the caves was to buy a ticket at the longboat office beside the river on Th Khem Khong, and join everyone else on a boat, so that's what I did. The return ticket cost $10.50 and the entrance fee to the caves was an extra $3.

I enjoyed the trip upstream, it's always lovely to get out on the water. It took two hours to reach the caves and, when we arrived, the longboat moored at a bamboo jetty. There were lots of steps to walk up and we had 45 minutes here before leaving, more than enough time.

On the return trip we stopped at Ban Xang Hai, better known as 'Whiskey Village'. This village produces 50% proof Lao whiskey, guaranteed to come with a hangover, I would imagine. I wasn't tempted to buy but was interested in looking at the cobra snakes and bees inside some of the bottles. Drink at your own risk! The return trip was quicker, 1.25 hours as we had the current behind us. Once we were back in Laung Prabang, and I had climbed the dozens of steps back up to the street, it was time for a late lunch.

I needed more cash (it's disappearing at an alarming rate!) so visited an ATM machine before visiting a travel agent to book a mini bus ticket to Vang Vieng, my next stop. They hit me up for an extra 5000 kip (about 80c) for the pickup, as my guesthouse is on the other side of the river! I paid up, but balked at the extra 10,000 they tried to add on after writing the ticket, saying they had made a mistake and it was really 15,000 kip for crossing the river. Good try!

Sunday, my last in Luang Prabang, is a slow one. The internet here is dreadful, it drops out continuously and it's taking me ages to publish these blogs, loading photos one at a time....painful. I have no accomodation booked in Vang Viang, as I can't get to the booking page on any of the booking sites. I have contacted my guesthouse of choice via their website, but no response. So, looks like I'm
Save The Bears Rescue CentreSave The Bears Rescue CentreSave The Bears Rescue Centre

A happy bear in a hammock
going to have to wing it, and hope I find a decent room when I get there....


Additional photos below
Photos: 13, Displayed: 13


Advertisement

Ticket office signTicket office sign
Ticket office sign

Find happiness at the longboat ticket office.
Pak Ou CavesPak Ou Caves
Pak Ou Caves

Boats at the end of the bamboo pier
Pak Ou CavesPak Ou Caves
Pak Ou Caves

The entrance as seen from the river
Pak Ou CavesPak Ou Caves
Pak Ou Caves

Some of the 4000 Buddha images inside the caves
Lao WhiskeyLao Whiskey
Lao Whiskey

Complete with a cobra


Tot: 0.051s; Tpl: 0.01s; cc: 7; qc: 24; dbt: 0.0238s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.1mb